The Animals of Farthing Wood
The Animals of Farthing Wood is a children's animated series commissioned by the European Broadcasting Union between 1992 and 1995, and is based on the series of books written by English author Colin Dann.1 It was produced by Telemagination, based in London, and La Fabrique, based in Montpellier in France, but also aired in other European countries. The first countries to air the series were Germany, Belgium, Ireland and the United Kingdom, in January 1993. Synopsis The television series followed the basic plots of the series of books, although certain elements were changed. It followed the animals of Farthing Wood, who were forced to flee their homes after humans started destroying the wood to build houses. Led by Fox, and guided by Toad, the animals left Farthing Wood on a journey to White Deer Park, a nature reserve where they would be protected. Unlike other children's series and films, The Animals of Farthing Wood did not feature much comedic content but rather relied on its strong storyline and plot, and multiple main characters are killed or die during the journey. The series contains mild gore in some episodes, which is one of its controversial points, like the 1978 film Watership Down. However the darker storyline has also earned the series a strong cult following and positive reception from many cartoon fans and critics. Series 1 chronicled the journey to White Deer Park, Series 2 took place in White Deer Park and chronicled the feud between the Farthing Wood animals and the hostile blue foxes, the third, final series chronicled the invasion of the rats into White Deer Park and the animals' attempts to fight them off. The episodes were made in both the UK and France. Because of this, in Series 1 the motorway's carriageways have traffic driving on the right hand carriageway of the motorway. However, they are briefly seen in Series 3 driving on the left hand side. Series Three seasons of the show were produced, each based on one or more of the Farthing Wood books. * Season 1 (1992–1993) ** The Animals of Farthing Wood * Season 2 (1994) ** In the Grip of Winter ** Fox's Feud ** The Fox Cub Bold * Season 3 (1995) ** In the Path of the Storm ** Battle for the Park The first two seasons were seen by fans as among the best animated shows on TV at the time due to its complex and intriguing plot, solid script and generally consistent animation, along with being liked for its darker and more dramatic themes for a children's show. However, the third season was seen[by whom?] as a disappointment. Fans claimed this was due its inferior story and script as opposed to the first two seasons, but the change in animation also did not help.[citation needed]. The change in animation style was also an attempt for the series to fit in with the 'cartoonish' appeal of other children's shows that were being aired at the time. In Season 3, the animals appear to take on more human movements, like folding their arms, or wings (though this occurred to a minor extent in the first seasons). Episodes Season 1 (January–March 1993) Season 2 (January–March 1994) Season 3 (September–December 1995) VHS/DVD Availability The classic VHS titles of the series, released through BBC Video, were nine volumes in all, each amalgamating several episodes to form feature-length omnibuses. Because of time limitations on each cassette, some original episode sequences were cut out. Such scenes removed from the series one VHS titles, for example, included Fox's confrontation with the farmer's dog, and his conversation and 'employment' with the town cat, where he kills several mice. The swimming pool scene from the journey is also excluded. DVD Releases Series 1 came out in France in February 2009. Series 1 was released in Germany on September 25, 2009, and Series 2 will be released in Germany on May 27, 2011. The German DVD releases offer both English and German audio options. Series 3 has also been released in Germany VHS Releases VHS titles were as follows: * Vol. 1: "The Journey Begins" * Vol. 2: "From Copse to Quarry" * Vol. 3: "On to White Deer Park" * Vol. 4: "The Challenge of Winter" * Vol. 5: "Friends & Enemies" * Vol. 6: "New Beginnings" * Vol. 7: "New Dangers" * Vol. 8: "The Rise of the Rats" * Vol. 9: "The Wanderers' Return" 'New Beginnings' was the first TAOFW video title to receive a 'PG' certificate from the BBFC, largely due to the violent battle between Fox and Scarface and the strong emphasis on death, although generally the content was actually not much grimmer than that in earlier volumes. In 1996, Another tape was released entitled "Three Tales" featured 'Toad's Tale', 'Badger's Tale' and 'The Foxes' Tale'. This was compiled from series 1 and 2. Individual episodes were also available on VHS as part of a running promotion in 'Farthing Wood Friends' magazine. Characters Original Farthing Wood animals Animals who joined the group during the journey Residents of White Deer Park Offspring of the Farthing Wood animals Other characters Animal name Description Books TV series Gender Mate Offspring First appearance Last appearance Whisper A vixen; Bold's mate, whom he meets outside the park. She convinced Bold to return to White Deer Park when she was expecting his cub, but Bold perished on their arrival at White Deer Park. Yes Yes Female Bold Plucky (TV), Husky and multiple unnamed (books) Shadows (2x10) Bully, Bully, Bully (3x13) Shadow Kind female badger who looked after Bold and became Hurkel's mate when she came to White Deer Park. She didn't come to White Deer Park in the books. Yes (though she never went to White Deer Park) Yes Female Hurkel (TV) unnamed (books) Three unnamed cubs Like Father, Like Son (2x08) Bully, Bully, Bully (3x13) Rollo English Mastiff who befriends Bold and Whisper. In season 2 of the TV series he is a St. Bernard who befriends Bold and Whisper. In season 3 he is a sheepdog who becomes the weasel's weaseldog and eventually the Warden's pet. He didn't leave White Deer Park with the Warden because he wanted to be with his friends the weasels. Yes Yes Male N/A N/A Time of Reckoning (2x11) Bully, Bully, Bully (3x13) Hollow/Holly Owl's mate, whom he/she meets at the former site of Farthing Wood. It took longer for them to get back to White Deer Park due to Owl getting her talons stuck in cement, even after breaking out and getting back to White Deer Park. He is a male in the TV series and a female in the books. Yes Yes Male (TV) female (books) Tawny Owl (Owl) Three unnamed owlets The Long Tailed Visitor (3x07) Bully, Bully, Bully (3x13) Robber A crow who looked after and befriended Bold. He is called Crow in the TV series. Yes Yes (as Crow) Male N/A N/A Like Father, Like Son (2x08) Reconciliation (2x13) Moth-Eaten Rook A rook who falls in love with Owl. He followed her back to the former site of Farthing Wood. He only appears in the TV series. No Yes Male Yes (unnamed) Yes (unnamed) Water, Water (3x03) Adventure for the Birds (3x06) I'll Never Be Sausages A friendly domestic orphan piglet whom the weasels met when they were searching for a new home outside White Deer Park. He made friends with Cleo and Fido until they went back to White Deer Park. He only appeared in the TV series. No Yes Male N/A N/A Scared By Silly Snakes (3x08) The Worst Kind of Hurricane (3x11) Cast * Jeremy Barrett: Mr. Rabbit, Mole, Bold, Friendly, Hollow, Mossy, Measley, Mr. Shrew, and others. * Rupert Farley: Fox, Mr. Hare, Mr. Pheasant, Plucky, Trey, and others. * Jon Glover: Scarface, Ranger, The Warden, and others. * Sally Grace: Owl, Weasel, Charmer, and others. * Stacy Jefferson: Vixen, Adder, Kestrel, Mrs. Hare, Mrs. Rabbit, and others. * Pamela Keevilkral: Dash, Cleo, Fido, Speedy, Whisper, Mrs. Squirrel, Mrs. Hedgehog, and others. * Ron Moody: Badger, Toad, Whistler, Bully, Spike, Rollo, Mr. Hedgehog, Mr. Vole, Mr. Mouse, The Great White Stag, and others. * Maria Warburg: Whisper (Audiobook only) Fox, the leader of the Animals of Farthing Wood, was voiced by Rupert Farley in the UK and Ireland version but in the US version he was played by Ralph Macchio. In France, Germany, Italy, Norway and Sweden the cast included the following: Buzz Books These are based upon the Characters in the Television series. Some parts had happened differently. * "Farewell to the Wood" (based upon The Wood in Danger) * "The Adventure Begins" (based upon The Journey Begins) * "Fire" (based upon Through the Fire and Water) * "A New Friend" (based upon Friend in Need) * "Heroes" (based upon Whistler's Quarry) * "The Silent Field" (based upon A Deathly Calm) * "The Storm Shelter" (based upon Pandemonium) * "Journey's End" (based upon So Near and Yet So Far) * "A New Home" (based upon A Hero's Welcome, Winter, and Survival) * "Badger in Danger" (based upon Winter, and Survival) * "Unwelcome Visitors" (based upon New Enemies) * "Spring Awakening" (based upon Home is Where the Heart Is) * "Bold" (based upon The Feud Begins) * "Trouble in the Park" (based upon Like Father, Like Son, Narrow Escapes, and Shadows) * "Showdown" (based upon Blood is Thicker Than Water) * "Peace" (based upon Reconciliation) * "Strangers in the Park" (based upon Comings and Goings) * "The Weasels' Adventure" (based upon The Missing Fox's Friend, Tiffs and Tempers, and The Long Tailed Visitor) * "To the Rescue" (based upon The Missing Fox's Friend,'' Adventure for the Birds,' and '''Scared by Silly Snakes) * "The Rat Spy" (based upon The Long Tailed Visitor and The Mole Game) * "What is Buzz Book 21 Called?" (based upon The Worst Kind of Hurricane, Homeward Bound, and Bully, Bully, Bully) Broadcasts and releases In France the programme is known as Les Animaux du Bois de Quat'sous ("The Animals of the Wood of Quat'sous"). It first aired on France 2 in 1994, and in Switzerland at the same time on TSR. It also aired in the following countries: * Belgium (BRTN and RTBF), as Beestenbos is Boos (for BRTN) and Les Animaux du Bois de Quat'Sous (for RTBF) * Bulgaria (Канал 1), as Животните от старата гора * Croatia (HRT), as Pustolovine Šumske Družine * Denmark (DR), as Dyrene Fra Lilleskoven * Finland (YLE), both in Finnish and Swedish, as Kaukametsän Pakolaiset and De Vilda Djurens Flykt respectively * Sweden (SVT), as above * Germany (ARD) and Austria (ORF), as Als die Tiere den Wald Verließen * Hungary (MTV), as A Gyűszűnyi Erdő Lakói * Ireland (RTE), both in English and Irish, the latter as Cairde Na Coille (The Woodland Friends or Friends of/from the Woods) * Italy (RAI), as Le avventure del bosco piccolo/''Volpe, Tasso e compagnia'' * Netherlands (NOS), as Beestenbos is Boos and Het Wakkere Woud * Norway (NRK), as Flukta frå Dyreskogen (Season 1) and Dyra i Hjorteparken (Season 2 and 3) (in Nynorsk) * Poland (WOT), as Zwierzęta z Ginącego Lasu, later (Polsat), as Zwierzęta z Zielonego Lasu * Portugal (RTP2), as Animais do Bosque * Romania (TVR), as Animalele din pădurea lemnului * Scotland (BBC One Scotland, BBC Two Scotland) both in English and Gaelic, as Astar Mòr nam Beathaichean as part of Dè a-nis? * Spain (TVE), as Los Animales del Bosque * Turkey (TRT), as Gürültülü Ormanin Hayvanlari * United States (Syndication) and (Cartoon Network) * Canada (Télé-Québec) as Les Animaux du Bois de Quat'sous and (YTV) in English * Mexico (Canal 5) Aired European Spanish dub * Honduras (Canal 11) European Spanish Dub * Argentina (Magic Kids) * Chile (Canal 13) * Ecuador (Equavisa) * Bolivia (Bolivisión) * Japan (SATV), as ファージングウッドのなかまたち (Farthingwood no Nakamatachi) It also aired in Brazil (TV Cultura, Os animais do bosque dos vinténs), featuring Élcio Sodré (Fox), Vanessa Alves (Vixen), Maximira Figueiredo (Owl), Francisco Bretas (Toad), Neuza Azevedo (Mole and Adder), Eudes Carvalho (Badger), Zaíra Zordan (Lady Blue) and Fábio Tomazine (Scarface). 26 episodes were also broadcast in Japan by Shizuoka Asahi Television. The series was broadcast by the ABC in Australia (8 May 1996 – 15 February 1999) where it also became popular. Adventures of Fox Comes last on the Greatest BBC Children's Video ever along with Fireman Sam, Pingu, Spider, William's Wish Wellingtons, Clangers, Nursery Rhyme Time, Noddy's Toyland Adventures, Funnybones, Hairy Jeremy and The Little Polar Bear. It has clips from the following episodes: * Beginning and end of The Wood in Danger (Loggers attack the Wood, Owl informed about the pond filled in, Assembly) * Beginning of The Journey Begins (Leaving the Wood) * End of Snare for the Unwary (Kestrel spots river, Animals cross River, Fox and Badger hit by driftwood) * Beginning of Who Shall Wear the Crown? (Badger found in reeds, Kestrel loses Fox, Animals move on) * Some beginning and Middle of New Friends, Old Enemies (Fox arrives at Town, Fox put onto truck, Fox meets Vixen) * Some parts of Friend in Need (parts with Hunting, Meeting Big Owl, Searching, Fox Hunt and the ending) Merchandise Apart from books and videos, there was also a Farthing Wood CD and in the mid-1990s, a 130-part magazine for children entitled "Farthing Wood Friends" was also developed. Audio tapes recapping the first two seasons were released, with the story being told to young fox cubs by several of the cast who would also debate the events and mimic some of the other characters. There are also three TV tie-in books available, one to accompany each of the TV series: : The Animals of Farthing Wood links with Series 1. : The Further Adventures of The Animals of Farthing Wood links with Series 2. : The Animals of Farthing Wood – Spirit of Survival links with Series 3. These follow the same storylines, but are presented in a comic-strip style. Watered-down versions of episode storylines were also featured as a running story in 'Farthing Wood Friends', illustrated using photographic stills from the series. Between magazine coverages of second and third series episodes, abridgements of Colin Dann's original stories were used to fill the void, entitled 'Tales From Farthing Wood'. Another book adaptation of the running story employed for series one was released by Ted Smart Publishing, with illustrations by Stuart Trotter. Episode stories were also abridged for Buzz Books, Reed Children's Books' range of storybooks based on popular children's characters. The Farthing Wood stories in this range started with five books to begin with, then steadily expanded to cover the remainder of series one and series two. Illustrations were produced by William Heinemann in favour of using stills from the series. Hornby, known mainly for its model railways, produced collectable figurines of the series ensemble, released in batches or 'presentation packs'. They were as follows: 1st Series: Fox, Badger, Mole, Weasel, Toad & Owl 2nd Series: White Stag, Scarface, Kestrel, Adder, Whistler & Rabbit 3rd Series: Bully, Vixen, Plucky, Fido, Cleo, Rollo, Measly, Speedy, Hollow, Hurkel, Dash & Sinuous The characters were also released in twin packs and later in the run, Hornby produced compatible play-scenes. Early in the run, almost simultaneous with the first series being shown in the UK, they released plush toys of Badger, Fox and Mole. Although these were rare finds in toyshops, they were the subject of a running promotion in 'Farthing Wood Friends', enabling readers to win them. Despite the show being very popular, the series did not see any form of DVD release until 2009, with the episodes on VHS hard to find up to then (in particular the last two collections). However, there had been an increase in unofficial DVDs available on eBay.[citation needed] Series 1 came out in France in February 2009.2 Series 1 was released in Germany on 25 September 2009,3 Series 2 was released in Germany on 27 May 2011,4 and Series 3 was released in Germany on 24 February 2012.5 The German DVD releases offer both English and German audio options. Differences between the books and the series There are a number of differences between the books and the television series, most notably the changing of a number of characters from male to female. This included Adder, Weasel, Owl and Kestrel, who retained the markings of a male kestrel. Owl had also been known as Tawny Owl in the books. In addition to this, the books featured a family of lizards who became the newts of the television series. New characters like the Shrews, Hurkel and Measley were introduced. Plucky is also changed from being Bold's grandson to his son. There are females that are Males now. They are Sinuous, The Big Owl and Hollow. The Fieldmice are now known as the Mice. Holly is now known as Hollow. Minor plot changes also exist, such as the order of the pheasant's deaths, the deaths of Badger and Moley, and the motives of certain characters. Scarface has a different reason for attacking the Farthing Animals and Bold leaves the Park after an argument with his father, rather than to find a mate as he does in the books. In contrast to Badger's death, Toad and Mossy survive the television series, the former befriending the rat who killed him in the books. The cause of Sinuous death was also changed. Of the rats, Brat originally returned to the sewers instead of being killed by Sinuous, while Bully had his tail bitten off by Cleo rather than being killed by Vixen. Scarface and his tribe were rival red foxes in the books. His mate was not also named in the books and her personality is not so developed. Too many red foxes would have been confusing for viewers, so the animators made Scarface and his family distinguishable by making them "blue foxes" (actually "silver foxes", a species with a greyish coat which is normally found only in fur farmings). Speedy was also unnamed. There are also one-episode characters that didn't appear in the books such as The Red Squirrels, Stoat and Scragg the Rat who is killed on his one-time appearance. The only main plotline that is left out of the series is the plot of The Siege of White Deer Park, in which the character known as 'The Beast' (a big wild cat) attacks the park causing further trouble for the animals' survival. The storyline of this book is presumably removed because of too much horror and peril themes and the sub-plots that occur in the book (such as Badger mistaking Mossy for Mole) are broken down into small plot changes in the other book storylines for the series. Credits * Based on the Books by: Colin Dann * Written by: Alan Case, Steve Walker, Sue Butterworth, Jenny McDade, Gordon Harrison, Elphin Lloyd-Jones, Valerie Georgeson * Adapted by: Steve Walker * Music Composed by: Detlev Kuhne * Theme Music Composed and Arranged by: Dennis Cooper * Recorded by: WDR Orchestra, KRO Cologne * Directors: Elphin Lloyd-Jones, Philippe LeClerc * Assistant Director: Emile Bourget * Animation Director: Alan Simpson * Character Designs: Elphin Lloyd-Jones, Philippe LeClerc, Patrick Michel * Storyboard: Gordon Harrison, Jean Francois Laguionie, Claude Aufrere * Backgrounds: Ian Henderson, Richard Mithonard, Valerie Carmona * Layouts: Sue Butterworth, Gordon Harrison, Ted Pettengell, Trevor Ricketts, Patrick Michel, Gerard Kiszel, Christian Ragoust * Animation: Thomas Barker, Monica Brutton, Alison de Vere, Andy Eraclerus, Christopher Evans, Joan Freestone, Tony Guy, Peter Hale, Arthur Humberstone, Simon Loxton, Fraser MacLean, Charlie MacRae, Janet Nunn, John Perkins, Mike Pocock, Paul Stone, Rosemary Welch, José Xavier * Key Animators: Chris Clarke, Gary Hender, Nathalie Biston, Marian Brooks, Valerie Pouyanne, Jean Francois Galataud, Monica Moinar, Lea Movement * Assistant Animators: Philippe Archer, Jean-Yves Regnault, Laurence Commeyras, Isabelle Pouyanne, Didier Chenu, Catherine Halvic, Muriel Chevallier, Sega Favre, Sylvia Bottiau, Sim Lignon * Trace & Paint: Audrey Hammond, Pat Arthy, Pete Arthy, Lynda Marmont, Chris Jones, Ross Marks, Sharon Martin, Becky New, Vivienne Redmond, Jenni Steers, Dominique Lenoble, Clarie Dame, Nancy Rey, Frederic Jaubert, Suzy Kopp, Sophie Beltran, Brigitte Boursereau, Rodney Crofton, Carole Dorange, Nathalie Finiels, Cathy Gentric, Isabelle Landmann, Claire Larnelle, Cathy Rigall, Maria Stockman, Mireille Valentin * Checking: Ann Kotch, Janine Arthy, Isabelle Perrichon * Rostrum Camera: Chris Williams, Anthony Hagen, Jacques Armand, Yves Francon, Jean Paul Rossard * Software: Animo Cambridge Animation Systems * Production Supervisor: Jean-Paul Gaspari * Production Coordinator: Dominique Edmond-Marlette * Production Accountants: Helmut Breuer, Philippe Marteaux * Editing: Theresa Plummer-Andrews, John Daniels, Ken Morgan, Tom Oliver * Special Effects: Stephan Hartl, Malcolm Beattie * Picture Editor: Fiona Keene * Videotape Services: Video Time * Line Test Camera: Plaza Synchron * Dialogue Editor: John Daniels, Hilary Daniels, Hans-Peter Kaufman * Track Readers: Otto Sander, Ulli Philipp, Tilly Lauenstein, Martin Semmelrogge, Helmut Ruge, Wichart V. Roell, Karin Kernke, Franz-Josef Steffens, Stephan Schwartz, Marion Martinzen, Manfred Lehmann, Peter Fricke, Benno Hoffmann, Thomas Reiner, Horst Sachtleben, Michael Habeck, Tommy Piper, Arne Elsholtz, Ingeborg Lapsien, Stefan Orlac * Associate Producer: Wolfgang Wegmann * Producer: John M. Mills * Production: Telemagination (London), Praxinos (Montpeller) * EBU Coordinator: Marie-Claire Vionnet * Executive Producers: Siegmund Grewenig, Theresa Plummer-Andrews * Film Laboratories: European Cineman, Television Year TV Transmission & Repeats Originally in the UK, first series episodes made its airing every Wednesday afternoon on Children's BBC (CBBC) from January 1993, with the week's episode being repeated on a Sunday morning. Interestingly, series two was repeated twice on CBBC during 1994. Here, the schedule changed to Fridays, similarly with a Sunday repeat. When the entire series was repeated again in the autumn/winter of '94, the schedule was changed to Thursdays. With series three, Thursdays became the norm, again with the Sunday morning repeat. Series one resurfaced on Wednesday afternoons during 1995 and again on Sunday mornings during 1997. Since then, it was regularly syndicated on the CBBC Channel, and on CBBC's Sunday morning 'Smile' programme, as was Noah's Island. The last known repeat of the series on terrestrial television was of series three, which was shown every weekday morning during October/November 2004. The series was also repeated in Gaelic in Scotland, know as Astar Mòr nam Beathaichean and was shown on BBC One Scotland at lunchtime from January - April 1994, The series was also shown on Dè a-nis? on BBC Two Scotland shortly after. The show was also repeated on cable and satellite channel Nickelodeon from January 1996 during its CBBC block presented by Otis the Aardvark which was originally shown during school hours along with the Nick Jr. block which launched in 1997. It was repeated on the channel for 4 years and was the only show to survive from the CBBC block after July 1999. The Animals of Farthing Wood returned to Nickelodeon on Monday 6 September 1999 on weekday mornings at 9.30am and from October 1999 through to January 2000, The repeats aired at early morning breakfast time at 6.00am. As of January 2000, The Animals of Farthing Wood no longer airs on Nickelodeon. Category:CBBC Category:Cbeebies Category:90s Shows Category:1990s Shows Category:Animated series Category:1992 television series debuts Category:1995 television series endings Category:2D animation